Once you’ve made the decision to return to work, the next big question to ask yourself is HOW? There are many different routes back into the workplace. Here are some ideas to help you with your job search:
Employed Roles
Returner programmes – this is a generic term for initiatives targeted specifically at returning professionals, eg, returnships, supported hiring programmes, returner events, return-to-work fellowships and returner training programmes. You can read more about what these terms mean and find listings of both open and past programmes on our website. And don’t forget to sign up to our free network to hear about the latest launches.
Applying for advertised roles – if you apply for online jobs, be aware that you may be competing with thousands of others for attention, so be selective and keep realistic expectations. Most organisations now use their own website as a recruitment vehicle, so identify those you are most interested in and see if you can sign up for alerts when new roles are posted. Some employers are now welcoming returner applications for a variety of open roles (for example, see O2 Career Returners, M&G Career Returners and Willmott Dixon Welcome Back).
You can also search for roles which are advertised on LinkedIn, making sure your profile is up-to-date. Another more focused channel is specialised job boards and recruitment agencies such as those listed here: recruitment agencies specialising in flexible/family-friendly roles.
Interim roles - joining an organisation in a distinct role for a defined period of time can be a great way to use your skills and experience without making a long-term commitment to returning to work. Short-term roles also usually receive fewer applications than permanent jobs. Opportunities arise as cover for maternity and long-term sickness and also when organisations are in transition and need someone on a temporary basis. There are established interim management agencies (such as Russam GMS and Alium Partners)
, however returners with longer career breaks usually find these kinds of roles through networking.
Apprenticeships – there is usually no upper age limit for apprenticeships and the advantages for employers – who are able to bring in new expertise and experience by hiring older apprentices – is clear. You can find information on higher and degree level apprenticeships on this Government website.
Self-employed options
Freelancing – this can give you flexibility and may be an ideal solution for those of you with significant family commitments. However, lack of security can be an issue and many freelancers find they have peaks and troughs in their work. For practical advice, see our blog on how to set yourself up as a freelancer and the freelancer resources page on our website.
Associate work - if you have a specific skill or expertise that you want to offer, associate work can provide advantages over freelancing: as an associate, the company you contract with is normally responsible for winning new work. However, companies which use associates rarely guarantee the amount of work, so consider having different associate relationships.
Project-based work - although organisations rarely advertise this kind of work, offering to work on a project can be a great introduction to an organisation. It may open doors to a full-time role or you could discover that you enjoy working in this way and develop your own consultancy.
Starting your own business - sometimes this can develop from freelancing or project work, or you may have an idea or a hobby that you want to develop into a product or service. In previous blogs, we gave some tips for starting a home business and advice for starting your own service business. You’ll also find links to many useful resources for starting your own business on our website.
Other routes
Strategic Volunteering – Volunteering can be a great way to refresh your skills and networks. a LinkedIn survey found that 41% of the professionals surveyed said that when evaluating candidates, they consider volunteer work equally as valuable as paid work experience. Do think strategically if you decide to look for a volunteering role, looking for opportunities to develop new skills or brush up on the ones you already have. You could also use a volunteering role as a way to explore a new area that you may be interested in working in.
Retraining/further study/updating your skills – if you decide that study is the best route for you, you’ll find links to useful websites here. There are also many vocational retraining options, such as those listed here.
There are many examples of different routes back to work in the Success Story Library on our website. Remember that the route back can be a windy one and that it's likely to take more time than you think. If you’ve already returned to work, we’d love to hear your story too - please email info@womenreturners.com.
Note: updated from a 2104 post
When was the last time you were interviewed? When it's five, ten or fifteen years since you last spoke about your professional achievements, facing an interview can be a daunting hurdle. With the arrival of 'returnships' in the UK, we are being asked increasingly for advice and support on interviewing skills from returners applying for these programmes. Morgan Stanley, for example, recently conducted 150 telephone interviews, with follow-on face-to-face interviews for successful applicants, to select their returnship programme participants.
While styles of questioning have become more structured, the basic goal of the interview process remains the same: the employer is trying to assess your suitability and fit for the role and their organisation. At the same time, it is vital to remember that you are also assessing the organisation for its suitability and fit for you.
The two key ingredients of successful interviewing
are passion and confidence. Both of these come from being clear about what you're looking for and what you have to offer. If you believe you're a good fit with the role and organisation you're applying for, it will come across.
Six Essential Steps
1. Research
You need to research all you can about the role, the
organisation, the industry and the people interviewing you. There is so much available online: company website, LinkedIn and Facebook pages; corporate videos; news articles; Twitter. Your network can provide other sources of information which might not be publicly available whether your contacts are employees, suppliers or customers of the organisation, or in the same industry. The more knowledge you have
and can demonstrate in your interview, the more impact you will have. For example, reading a LinkedIn profile will give you some idea of the interviewer(s) and could help you to find common ground.
2. Develop examples of your skills and competencies
You will talk most eloquently – and passionately -
about those roles and experiences which are the highlights of your career, so
pick one or two and decide what you want to say about them. The biggest change to interviewing in recent decades has been the prevalence of the 'competency-based interview'. You are likely to be asked to
demonstrate the specific competencies or skills that the role
requires (such as analytical ability, influencing senior stakeholders or teamwork), through detailed examples. Read carefully through the job
description, identify the job requirements and think back through your experience to identify examples of your achievements which show these competencies. Examples don't all have to be work
related: they can be equally valuable if they have come from education, sport, voluntary work or community activities.
Avoid doing the following:
- apologising that the situation was a long time ago or saying 'Back in 2001', just say which role it related to
- spending too long talking about the detail of the issue you faced and not long enough about the successful action you took. Your interviewer is more interested in what you accomplished than the intricacies of the background story.
- talking in the third person when it was you who did the work (and not your team)! Use 'I' as much as possible, otherwise you can appear overly modest, even unconfident.
3. Prepare
answers to typical questions
These include:
- Why do you want this role?
- Tell me
about yourself.
- What are
your strengths and development areas?
- What else
would you like to tell me?
These questions have two things in common. They are all open questions and they are all an invitation to you say precisely why
you are the right person for the role. In preparing your answers, think about what you most want the interviewer to remember about you when you leave the room.
4. Rehearse
If you've not been to an interview for a while, it
can feel strange to be talking about yourself in the way that an interview
requires, so it is a good idea to practise saying your answers out loud. You may find it helpful to role play the interview experience with a friend or another job seeker. If you have someone whose perspective you trust, feedback on how you are coming
across will be useful.
5. Prepare
your own questions
Remember that interviews are a two-way process. While the interviewer is assessing your suitability for the role and organisation, you need to be doing the same. Make sure that you ask the questions that will help you to decide if the role and organisation is a good fit for you and your requirements. You will also show that you have done your homework.
6. Send a Thank You
Always send a thank you email. Not only is this good practice, but it gives you a further opportunity to reinforce your suitability and enthusiasm for the role.
In previous posts we've identified a selection of ways in which you can find your way back to work: returnships; networking and creative crafting of a role. But these are just a fraction of the options that are available!
So, what other possibilities are there? And has anyone actually found work like this? Routes we've come across include:
Applying for advertised roles - although an obvious option, the places where roles are advertised might be less apparent, especially on the web (see our resources section for some ideas). If you sign up to online recruitment agencies, be aware that you will be competing with thousands of others for attention, so be selective and don't expect too much. Most organisations now use their own websites as a recruitment vehicle and you can usually sign up for alerts that are issued when new roles are posted. Many organisations use LinkedIn to search for people so make sure your profile is up-to-date and relevant to the kind of role you want. You can also search on LinkedIn for the thousands of role which are advertised.
The following options can provide more flexibility and allow you to ease yourself gradually back to work if you are not ready for the bigger commitment of a permanent role (see thinking small for other examples).
Freelancing - Sarah* formerly a market research agency director became a freelance researcher for her previous employer as a first step to marketing herself as an extra resource to other agencies. She became so successful at this that she soon created her own business taking on whole research projects which she designed and managed herself, drawing on additional freelance resource when she needs it.
Associate work - if you have a specific skill or expertise that you want to offer, associate work can provide advantages over freelancing: as an associate, the company you contract with is normally responsible for winning new work. However, companies which use associates rarely guarantee the amount of work and so having different associate relationships can provide necessary variety. Also, from a tax point of view, it means you won't be classed by HMRC as an employee. I still do some work as an associate of the coaching organisation I joined when I first launched my own business.
Project-based work - Although organisations rarely advertise this kind of work, offering to work on a project can be a great introduction to an organisation and can open doors for you there. Alternatively, you could discover that you enjoy working in this way and develop your own consultancy.
Interim roles - joining an organisation in a defined role for a defined time can be a great way to use your skills and experience without making a long-term commitment to returning to work. Opportunities arise as cover for maternity and long-term sickness and also when organisations are in transition and need someone on a temporary basis. While there are established interim management agencies, you are likely to have more success finding these kinds of roles through networking.
Skilled or strategic volunteering - Amy*, a former city lawyer, chose to volunteer in the legal department of a major national charity as her route back to work. She started out advising on contracts which was her expertise and after a while negotiated a move into the trusts and legacies team. Here she was able to build up the right experience to apply for permanent paid roles as a private client lawyer in private practice, her ideal new role.
And finally, there is the option of starting your own business. Sometimes this can develop from freelancing or project work and sometimes you have an idea for a product or service you want to develop. A business can develop from a hobby, as it did for the woman who made my new curtains and for Helen* who now combines her PR and communication expertise and great interest in human stories with her business partner's film-making skills to create personal and corporate videos.
On our success storieshttp://wrpn.womenreturners.com/success-stories/ page you'll see more examples of the different routes people find for getting back to work. If you've returned to work, we'd love to hear your story too!
Posted by Katerina
